Pneumatic stacker.



No. 660,|59. y Patented'ct. 23, |900. c. B.,& c. T. Hlxson a A. L. TAnnANT.

PNEUMATIC STACKER.

(Appueaitmn med Feb. 2, 1900.) (N0 HOdGL) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

No. 660,I59. Patented Oct. 23, |1900. C. B. & C. T. HIXSDN A. L. TARRANT.

Pnzu'mnlc sucks-zn.

(Appueataon mad n. '2. 1900.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

(lo Nudel.)

Tn: Nonms Prrsns co. moro-mwa.. WASHINGTON. n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CLARENCE B. HIXSON, CHARLES T. HIXSON, AND ASA L. TARRANT, OF HOLT, OKLAHOMA TERRITORY.

PNEUMATIC STACKER.

SPECFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 660,159` dated October 23, 1900. Application led February 2, 1900. ASerial No, 3,696. (No model.)

To @ZZ whoml it may concern.'

Be itkuown that we,CLARENCE B. HIXsoN, CHARLES T. HIXsoN, and AsA L. TAREANT, citizens of the United States, residing at Holt, in the county of Voods and Territory of Oklahoma, have invented a new and useful Pneumatic Stacker, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention is a pneumatic stacker of the class in which a blast-fan and dischargetube are combined in operation with a threshing-machine, the blast-fan creating a current of air through the discharge-tube which carries the straw with it through the tube and delivers the same upon a stack.

The object of our invention is to provide a pneumatic stacker which does not create a current or blast of air through the threshing and separating mechanism and which operates efficiently to deliver the straw upon the stack without wasting any of the grain.

Our invention consists in the combination, with a fan and feeders adapted todirect the straw mechanically to the fan, of beaters disposed above the feeders andA adapted to loosen the straw` as it passes from the separator and prevent it from falling in mass upon the feeders.

Our invention further consists in the peculiar construction and combination of devices hereinafter fully set forth, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a longitudinal sectional View of a port-ion ofa threshing-machine and separator provided with a pneumatic stacker constructed in accordance with the essential features of our invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse sectional view of the same, taken on the line fc of Fig. l.

The threshing and separating machine l, which may be of any preferred construction and forms no part of our present invention, is provided on its rear side with a casing 2, into which the straw is discharged from the separator. In the lower side of the casing is located a drum 3, of suitable construction, in which operates a fan 4, which is adapted to create a current or blast of air sufficiently strong to carry with it the straw which is delivered into the casing and to discharge the straw through the tube 5 onto a stack.

The fan is carried on a shaft 6, which is mounted in bearings 7, supported on rearward extensions of the threshing and separating machine frame. Openings, as at 8, in the sides of the casing 2 admit air to the fan. Apulley 16 on the shaft 6 receives power from a suitable counter-shaft through a belt (not shown) in the usual manner and causes the fan to rotate when the threshing and separating machine is in operation. Rigidly secured on the fanshaft, on opposite sides of the fan, are feeders 11, which are provided with spiral arms l2, which spirally-disposed arms l2 inthe respective feeders are disposed in reverse relation to each other and are hence adapted to feed straw from opposite sides of the drum toward the centrally-located fan mechanically, as will be readily understood. 1 A pair of skeleton beaters 13, which are preferably of oblong rectangular form, as

hereshown, are carried on shafts 14, which are arranged longitudinally in the casing 2 and mounted in suitable bearings, as at l5. The said beaters, as appears clearly in Fig. 2, are disposed above and at a suitable distance from the spiral straw-feeders and are adapted to separate the straw as it is discharged into the casing 2 and prevent it from falling in masses upon the feeders. The said beaters serve efficiently to break up damp or wet clumps or tufts of straw and to scatter the same loosely over the feeders in a condition to be caught and carried off by the fan blast or current.

For the purposes of illustration We have shown the shafts 14 connected together by intermeshing spur-gears d and in Fig. 2 have indicated a driving-shaft b, geared to one of the shafts Maud deriving its power through a belt l0 from a pulley 9 on the fan-shaft.; but it will be understood that the said beaters may be rotated in any suitable manner and connected to the driving mechanism by any suitable form of gear, and hence we do not desire to limit ourselves in this particular.

The discharge-tube comprises the lower section 17,*Which is immovable and communicates with the drum and is adapted toree sconto ceive the blast direct from the fan, and l the upper sectionlS; which is connectedito the" lowersection,as byaball-and-socketjoint,(indicated at 19,) this construction enabling the upper section to be inclined at any desired angle and disposed in anyrequired direction. The upper section 18 of the discharge-tube is supported in part and adapted to be shifted laterally by cords 20, which are attached thereto, guided on sheaves 2l at the-outer ends of supporting-arms 22 and have their inner ends attached to and coiled in opposite direction. upon a winch 23. winch is journaled in bearings 24, that prof ject from the rear side of the casing, andis further provided with a crank 25, whereby it may be turned in either direction.

22, which carry the sheaves-2l, projectlrear ward from andare supported by the casing,

as shown inFig. l. porting cord, rope, or chain 26 is vconnected to the upper section 18 of the discharge-lume,-

as by an eye-ring, (indicated at' 27.) Said cord, rope, or chain passes over alsuitable guide-sheave 28, mounted .on `the threshing and separating machine, and maybe secured in any suitable manner, the function of this cord, rope, or chain, aswill be understood; being to elevate or lowerithe uppersection of the discharge-tube and Ito main tain the same at any required adjustment..

A deflector-shield 29 is disposed beyond the discharge end of the discharge-tube and piv otally mounted in thexouter end spof a pair of arms 30, which project from said dischargetube. The said deiector-shield is provided on opposite sides with respective upward and downward extending arms3l, to which are attached operatingecords 32, said cords being secured on a suitable cleat or other device, as at 33, and serving. to dispose the deiiectorshield at any required angle `with relation to the discharge-tube.

When in operation, the beatersl3, as here` inbefore indicated, scatter the straw and break up the masses thereof and cause the straw to fall upon the spirally-disposed feeding-arms l2 in a condition to be caught and carried off by the` blast or current from the fan. The function of the spirally-disposed straw-feeders `12 is to mechanically direct the straw as it falls upon said feeders from the said beaters toward the opposite sides of the fan, while the said straw will be caught by the intake of the fan and carried oif by the air blast or current created by the fan through the discharge-tube. In pneumatic stackers which are not provided with such feeders the The said l.

The arms An elevator and sup power o'flthe -bl'ast-fanstherein necessarily greatenongh rto cause the straw to be sucked into the Sphere of action of the fans pneumatically, and the action of the fans has been such as to set up strong drafts and currents `of air in thethreshin-gand separatingsmechanism, whichcurrents cause a certain pro-y portion `ofthe grain to be caught and carried thereby to the fans and to be discharged by `the fanswith the straw onto the stack and hence lost.

Our invention obviates waste of grain by providing the feeders, which :serve mechanically to direct the straw to the fan, an d hence lreduce the necessary' power thereof, a fan when combined with our improved devices for mechanically directingthe straw thereto being efiicientin discharging the straw upon the stack-b y blast or 'current of air of greatlyreduced strength as compared withpneu matic strawstackerswhichFare" not provided with such devices.

It will be furthermore understood from the foregoing description and by reference to the accom pan yingdrawings that inasmuch asthe openings-8, which supply air to the fan, are located in the sides `of the drum andat right angles to theflon'gitudinal 'aXis'of the threshing and separating machine the tendency of the fan `to create drafts in the threshing and separating machineis materially reduced.

Having thus described our invention, we claiml. In a pneumatic straw-stacker, the combination with astacker-tu'be and a fan, of feeders to mechanically direct the strawto the fan, and beaters disposed above said fan', and adapted totoss and loosen the strawbefore it falls upon the'feeders, substantially as described.

2. In a pneumatic straw-stacker, the combination with a stacker-tub`e and a fan, of feeders-to mech'anicallydirect thestraw to the fan, and the pair of open or skeleton oppositely-revoluble beatersA disposed above the fan and adapted to toss `and loosen the straw before it falls upon the-feeders, substantially as described.

In testimonythat We claim the foregoing as our own we have hereto affixed our signatures in the presence of two witnesses.

CLARENCE B. HIXSON. CHARLES T. I-IIXSON. ASA L. TARRANT.

Witnesses:

I-I. L. MARTs, MAY MAR'rs.

IOO 

